“I don’t really care about children and all that,” Ou Ming said “As long as we’re together, I’m not really concerned about having children.”


  Yu Lili panicked even more and asked, “How are you not concerned? I……”


  “Shhh……” Ou Ming interrupted her and prevented her from continuing. “Would you like to hear what my regret is?”


  “Yes, but first, yell it out loud that we want children.” Yu Lili pleaded a little desperately, “If you don’t yell it, what if the gods don’t hear me and my prayer doesn’t get answered?”


  “Alright. How should I yell it?” Ou Ming asked.

  “Well……” Yu Lili hesitated.

  “Children of Ou Ming and Yu Lili, come here quickly! Daddy and Mommy need you! Daddy loves you!” Ou Ming’s voice wasn’t loud. He continued, “Regardless of what Daddy did wrong in the past, I’ve acknowledged my mistake! I beg of you to come back quickly!”


  Yu Lili’s heart began to ache. “Even you call out to them this way, they won’t come back. Even if I do get pregnant again, I doubt it’ll be a pair of twins.”


  “That is my biggest regret,” Ou Ming gently said. “My twin children weren’t given a chance to be born. That is my greatest regret.”


  Yu Lili’s nose ached with unshed tears as her eyes reddened.

  “Are you cold?” he asked. “Let’s go.”


  “OK.” Yu Lili held on to Ou Ming’s arm. She rubbed her eyes and nodded her head.

  –


  By the time Yu Lili and Ou Ming returned to the Shen residence, the hour was late.

  Old Mrs. Shen and Wen Fenglin were sitting together chatting over tea. When they saw the couple return, Wen Fenglin waved Yu Lili over and said, “Come here. I would like to discuss something with you, Daughter.”


  Yu Lili blinked her eyes and went to sit by Wen Fenglin’s side.

  “Ou Ming, come over too.” Wen Fenglin waved at him.

  Ou Ming was just as surprised as Yu Lili. It wasn’t often that Wen Fenglin would call them over so somberly.

  “What’s wrong, Dad?” Ou Ming sat down on the couch and curiously looked at Wen Fenglin.

  Old Mrs. Shen smiled and replied, “You’re holding your wedding soon, aren’t you? I heard from your father that it’ll be on the ninth of next month. It’s coming to the end of the month now, and the ninth is exactly 18 days away. According to an ancient Chinese custom of ours, the bride and groom are not to see each other for half a month before the wedding. Yu Lili, remain in the Capital for the next couple of weeks. After all, you’ve completed your errands today. Ou Ming, you may go back to Kingstown.”


  Wen Fenglin was of the same thought and nodded his head, saying, “I’ll spend this time in the Capital with Yu Lili. Ou Ming, this will give you the chance to go back and prepare for the wedding. The timing works out well.”


  “No way!”


  “I don’t think so……”


  Yu Lili and Ou Ming both spoke up at the same time. They were in agreement with each other.

  With a hint of rebuke, Old Mrs. Shen said to Yu Lili while holding her hand, “There’s a reason why our ancestors passed such a custom down. The son and daughter-in-law of the neighboring Zhang family didn’t believe in this. They’re quarreling all day now. A while back, she even suffered from a miscarriage because of the tension. This is something you can’t afford not to follow. Furthermore, the both of you have been together for so long. This period of separation will do you some good. Am I right, Xiao Wen?”


  “You’re right, Auntie Shen. Lili, listen to your father and your grandmother,” Wen Fenglin said. “Dad and Granny will never do anything to harm you.”


  Ou Ming, on the other hand, was extremely adamant. He again objected, “No way!”


  “Buzz off. You have no say here. We’re just letting you know. When it comes to the wedding, it’s all up to the elders!” Old Mrs. Shen didn’t give two hoots about the fact that she was playing the age card and spoke with all the righteous indignation she could muster. “This period of separation will benefit your mutual relationship. In the future, you’ll learn to understand why we were so insistent on this.”